The Universal Door of Gwanyin

7~11

The Universal Door of Gwanshiyin Bodhisattva
(The Bodhisattva Who Contemplates the Sounds of the World)

Chapter 25 

Sutra:

If someone is imprisoned, shackled, or chained,
Or if his hands and feet are in stocks,
If he evokes the strength of Guanyin,
His bonds will open and he will be free.

Outline:

L7. The difficulty of stocks and chains.

Commentary:

If someone is imprisoned, shackled, or chained, or if his hands and feet are in stocks. The character for prison, qiu, is the image of a person, inside four walls.

Let's say you get put in jail, and then on top of that you are forced to wear handcuffs and chains, and your head is put in the stocks.

Those of you with families should hurry and wake up! Do not be imprisoned by the three big traps. One's parents are like a cangue around one's neck. Children are like handcuffs. And one's spouse is like the chains on one's legs.

* * * * * * * * * *

Right now America needs left-home people. If anyone wishes to leave the home-life, no matter what they are like, I will approve them. Even if they misbehaved in the past, it will be fine as long as they will behave after they leave home. I want to do whatever I can to create Elders in America. If they grow old on their own, they do not lay a good foundation. I want to foster the elders of American Buddhism. In the future every one of you left-home people has a chance to become an Elder or even a Patriarch of American Buddhism.

* * * * * * * * * *

If he evokes the strength of Guanyin, his bonds will open and he will be free. Long ago in China, there was a monk who was captured by one of the Yao tribe. The Yao people had their own language, which is completely different from Chinese, and they were very wild. When they took prisoners, they would kill and eat them. The monk was captured and locked in a cell. They were going to eat him!

The monk believed in Guanshiyin Bodhisattva, so even though he knew their intentions, he was not afraid. He just single-mindedly recited Guanshiyin Bodhisattva's name. The monk recited and recited until a tiger showed up and tore the cell apart, and so he was set free. In spite of the danger, he was not harmed.

Reciting the name of Guanshiyin Bodhisattva brings so many responses that you could never finish speaking of them.

Sutra:

If someone is about to be harmed,
By mantras, spells, or poison,
If he evokes the strength of Guanyin,
The harm will all return to the sender.

Outline:

L8. The difficulty of mantras, spells, and poison.

Commentary:

If someone is about to be harmed, by mantras, spells, or poison. Spells are also mantras.

In the section on the twelve types of living beings, the Shurangama Sutra talks about the wasp, which steals caterpillars and transforms them into its own young. It puts the caterpillar in its mud nest and recites a mantra that says, "Be like me, be like me." At the end of that period, the change takes place, and the caterpillar becomes the offspring of the wasp.

There are all kinds of mantras. There are evil mantras that can kill people, but there are also efficacious mantras that help and benefit people. Here, in the Sutra text, we are talking about mantras that can harm people. When these mantras are recited, the victim gets all drowsy and befuddled.

Suppose a person is about to be harmed by mantras, spells, and poisons, if he evokes the strength of Guanyin, the harmful poisons and mantras cannot hurt him. Not only that, but the harm will all return to the sender. The poison or mantras will bounce back and harm the person who sent it out in the first place.

In China, long ago, there was a very accurate diviner, one who told fortunes with the Yi Jing [The Book of Changes]. The reason he was so effective was that he had a demon helping him out. Every year the demon had to eat a virgin boy and a virgin girl, which the diviner would offer to him.

One year, the young girl who was marked for the sacrifice recited Guanyin Bodhisattva's name in the room in which she was held captive. She was used to reciting Guanyin's name at home, and now she continued to do so. What do you think happened? The demon came for his meal. It looked in through the window and shone light out of its eyes onto the young girl. Suddenly, the girl's mouth emitted as she recited Guanyin's name, and she heard a loud noise as something fell down from the ceiling to the floor. Thinking that the demon had come to eat her, she screamed and attracted the attention of a policeman who was walking by. The policeman broke the door down, came into the room, and found a huge python, a mahoraga. It was dead.

The diviner was arrested by the police and questioned about locking the girl up. He said he had an immortal helping him do his divination, and the immortal demanded a young girl and a young boy to eat once a year. That was how he became such an accurate diviner and raked in so much money. They locked the diviner in jail. He told fortunes for others, but he never figured his own fortune would turn out so bleak! Therefore, harming others is just harming yourself.

The line "The harm will all return to the sender" was changed by the Song Dynasty poet, Su Dongpo. He said, "In Buddhism they teach compassion. This line does not sound very compassionate to me." And so he changed the line to "For both parties there will be no trouble." Neither the one who sent out the mantras nor the victim will be harmed.

He was wrong, though. Although in Buddhism killing is prohibited and the liberation of life is encouraged, still, evil people must be restrained from harming good people. Therefore, the victim who knows how to recite Guanyin Bodhisattva's name will not be harmed, but if there is "no trouble," the attacker will just go on to the next person, who may not know to recite. There are plenty of people who do not know how to recite.

So Su Dongpo's line does not work. "The harm will all return to the sender" is correct. It is fitting that the evil person should undergo such a retribution.

Sutra:

If someone meets with evil rakshasas,
Poisonous dragons, or ghosts,
If he evokes the strength of Guanyin,
They will then not dare to harm him.

Outline:

L9. The difficulty of ghosts.

Commentary:

If someone meets with evil rakshasas, poisonous dragons, or ghosts.Rakshasas are extremely evil ghosts. They eat people!

Some dragons harm people. They hide out in a pond, a river, or a lake, and when you walk by, they spit poisonous vapors, which can kill you. They can even suck you right into their stomachs!

There are many kinds of ghosts. There are rich ghosts, poor ghosts, and penniless ghosts. Rich ghosts are the leaders of the ghosts. Poor ghosts are not too well off. Penniless ghosts have nothing at all.

"Do ghosts use money?" you ask.

Ghosts do not use money, but their bad habits cause them to act like people, and so they look for more money all day long. Basically, they do not need money for anything, but their attachment confuses them. Chinese people burn counterfeit paper money to pacify the ghosts. In the Shurangama Mantra, many different kinds of ghosts are mentioned. Here we are talking about ghosts in general.

When a person runs into evil ghosts, if he evokes the strength of Guanyin, they will then not dare to harm him. When you recite Guanyin's name, there is light. Since ghosts are afraid of the light, they would not be able to see you or harm you in any way.

Sutra:

If someone is surrounded by vicious beasts,
With fearsome fangs and claws,
If he evokes the strength of Guanyin,
The beasts will quickly run far away.

Outline:

L10. The difficulty of vicious beasts.

Commentary:

If someone is surrounded by vicious beasts. "Vicious beasts" refers to wolves, panthers, tigers, bears, and all kinds of animals who eat people. There are no tigers in the mountains in America, but in China and India there are many tigers. Tigers will eat anything. When I was a child, I used to roam in the mountains for five or six days at a time, and I ran into all these beasts. I do not know why, but they never ate me.

If a person runs into evil beasts with fearsome fangs and claws, if he evokes the strength of Guanyin, the beasts will quickly run far away. Because of the magical response obtained through Guanyin Bodhisattva's intervention, the beasts will be afraid and run far, far away when they see you.

Sutra:

Poisonous snakes and scorpions,
Have blazing lethal vapors,
But if one evokes the strength of Guanyin,
At the sound of one’s voice, they will disperse.

Outline:

L11. The difficulty of snakes and scorpions.

Commentary:

Poisonous snakes and scorpions, have blazing lethal vapors. The sting of certain scorpions can prove fatal. Some kinds of lizards, such as a certain species found in Thailand, also emit toxic vapors.

But if one evokes the strength of Guanyin, at the sound of one's voice, they will disperse. When the lethal creatures hear you recite the name of Guanyin Bodhisattva, they will run off, hide away, and make no further mischief.

Sutra:

Clouds of roaring thunder and lightning
May send down hail or great floods of rain,
But if one evokes the strength of Guanyin,
The clouds will immediately scatter.

Outline:

L12. The difficulty of thunder and rain.

Commentary:

Clouds of roaring thunder and lightning may send down hail or great floods of rain. Sometimes hailstones can weigh several dozens of pounds. They can be so heavy that they can kill a cow, to say nothing of a person. But if one evokes the strength of Guanyin, the clouds will immediately scatter. You do not have to recite for very long, and the hailstones and storms will disperse.

Sutra:

Living beings are beset with hardships,
And oppressed by limitless sufferings.
The power of Guanyin’s wondrous wisdom
Can rescue the world from suffering.

Outline:

K2. The three poisons and two requests.

Commentary:

Living beings are beset with hardships. Living beings are born because of a multitude of conditions. There are millions of different kinds of living beings.

In Chinese, the word for "living being" contains the word zhong, which is the character for four, si, with three people, ren, underneath it. It means "multitude."

Among living beings, humans are the most problematical. People have to wear clothes, eat, and go to work. It is a lot of trouble. However, human beings are also the wisest among living beings. Animals and other living beings do not have as many problems, but they are also stupid. Since they are stupid, they get pushed around by people. And so in China, there is a saying,

Among the myriad creatures, people are the most magical.

People are the most intelligent of all creatures. Although we say they are the most intelligent, they sometimes do stupid things. How is that? They like to give themselves trouble. They fight with themselves. How do they do this? "Hardships" arise. It is said,

Under heaven there's nothing happening;
Stupid people just like to stir things up.
Stupid people make trouble for themselves.

Now the text says that living beings are beset by hardships and oppressed by limitless sufferings. They create trouble for themselves, and so they undergo limitless forms of suffering. If people do not have food to eat, clothes to wear, or a place to live, they suffer. With so many conditions on their happiness, they are forced to toil all day long to get food to eat. They may even steal from each other to preserve their own lives. They do this because they are tormented by suffering.

The power of Guanyin's wondrous wisdom can rescue the world from suffering. Therefore, no matter what is bothering you, you should not worry. Just recite the name of Guanyin Bodhisattva, then gradually the problem will resolve itself. Guanyin Bodhisattva's wisdom is subtle, wonderful, and inconceivable. All you need is a sincere heart, and the Bodhisattva will help you.

Sutra:

Complete with the power of spiritual penetrations,
Vastly cultivating wisdom and expedient means,
Going throughout countries in the ten directions,
He manifests everywhere in all places.

Outline:

I2. Answers to subsequent questions.
J1. Manifesting.
K1. Universal response with body karma.

Commentary:

Complete with the power of spiritual penetrations. What is meant by "the power of spiritual penetrations?" There are six types of spiritual penetrations.

1. The Penetration of the Heavenly Eye. With the Heavenly Eye, you can see at a glance what the gods of the Heaven of the Thirty-three are doing.

2. The Penetration of the Heavenly Ear. With the Heavenly Ear, you can hear all the sounds throughout the ten directions, in the heavens and below.

3. The Penetration of Other's Thoughts. You can know what other people are thinking.

4. The Penetration of Past Lives. You can know the cause and effect involved in former lives. You can know what kinds of beings people were in their former lives.

5. The Penetration of the Perfected Spirit, also called the Penetration of the Complete Spirit. With this penetration, you can fly and transform at will.

6. The Penetration of the Extinction of Outflows. This is the hardest one to obtain.

The ghosts and spirits all have the above mentioned five penetrations. But they do not possess the Penetration of the Extinction of Outflows. Guanshiyin Bodhisattva has all six of them.

Vastly cultivating wisdom and expedient means. "Vastly" means that the Bodhisattvas did not cultivate just one Dharma-door, but that they cultivated all manner of Dharma-doors. For example, right now not only do we study the Sutras, we also learn Chinese and study the Shurangama Mantra and the Great Compassion Mantra. On top of that, we also want to learn the Great Compassion Repentance. Why? It is all a part of "vastly cultivating wisdom and expedient means."

Going throughout countries in the ten directions, he manifests everywhere in all places. There is not a single place where Guanyin Bodhisattva does not go. He has been everywhere.

All of us living beings have affinities with Guanyin Bodhisattva. Anyone who recites Guanyin Bodhisattva's name will receive the Bodhisattva's protection. But if you do not recite, Guanyin Bodhisattva would not pay any attention to you. Why not? Because you don't even care to get acquainted, and you don't even know or recollect the Bodhisattva's name.

If you want to be friends with Guanshiyin Bodhisattva, all you have to do is keep reciting, "Namo Guanshiyin Bodhisattva." When he hears you reciting, he will think, "Ah, hah! I have made another friend! Good, I will help my new friend." If you do not recite, the Bodhisattva will say, "He does not want to be friends. I am not going to pay any attention to his affairs."

Someone wants to know how to obtain the Penetration of the Heavenly Eye. There are many methods. First of all, you can single-mindedly recite the Shurangama Mantra. You can also study the Great Compassion Mantra and the Forty-two Hands. You can also give up sleeping to study the Buddhadharma. But trying to get the Heavenly Eye by giving up sleeping is very dangerous, and I hope that people would not use that method. Why not?

You probably remember the story about the Buddha's disciple Aniruddha, who used to sleep through the Buddha's lectures. The Buddha scolded him, saying,

Hey! Hey! How dare you sleep, like an oyster or a clam?
Sleep! Sleep for a thousand years, and you'll never hear the Buddha's name.

After the Buddha scolded him, he became very vigorous and refused to sleep for seven days. As a result, he went blind. The Buddha taught him the Vajra Illumining Bright Samadhi, and Aniruddha opened his Heavenly Eye. He was foremost of the Buddha's disciples in having the Heavenly Eye.

Aniruddha means "not poor." Limitless eons and countless lifetimes ago, Aniruddha was a poor farmer. He had to toil and sweat, and still he had no money. At that time he was a beginner in the Buddhadharma. Even though he was not a disciple of the Buddha, he did understand the principle of giving.

One day while the farmer was working, a cultivator happened by. The Bhikshu had been certified to the fruit and was a Pratyekabuddha, but the farmer did not know that at the time. The old Bhikshu was returning from his begging rounds. It was his practice to beg from only seven houses. Then, if he had not obtained any food, he would return to the mountain for another seven days before going out to beg again. At that particular time, he was returning with an empty bowl.

When the farmer saw the poor monk, he decided to offer up his lunch to him. He had no idea the old Bhikshu was a Pratyekabuddha. Now, the Pratyekabuddha had the Penetration of Other's Thoughts, so when he looked into the causes and conditions, he saw that this lunch, consisting of the poorest quality rice, constituted a most sincere offering. He praised the farmer and said, "So it is, so it is. Your offering is made with a true heart!" The Pratyekabuddha then returned to his mountain.

Later on, a rabbit hopped along and jumped on the farmer's back. The farmer ran home, but try as he might, he could not shake the rabbit off. Then he noticed it was made of gold. He cut off one of the golden rabbit's legs and exchanged it for money. The leg grew right back. After that, he had money in every life. Why? Because he made offerings with a true heart to a Pratyekabuddha, a sage who had been certified to the fruit. That was his reward. In every life he was "not poor."

In the Sutra in Forty-two Sections, the Buddha said,

Giving food to a hundred bad people does not equal giving food to a single good person.

Giving food to a thousand good people does not equal giving food to one person who holds the Five Precepts.

Giving food to ten thousand people who hold the Five Precepts does not equal giving food to a single Srotaapanna.

Giving food to a million Srotaapannas does not equal giving food to a single Sakridagamin.

Giving food to ten million Sakridagamins does not equal giving food to a single Anagamin.

Giving food to a hundred million Anagamins does not equal giving food to a single Arhat.

Giving food to a billion Arhats does not equal giving food to a single Pratyekabuddha.

Giving food to ten billion Pratyekabuddhas does not equal giving food to a Buddha of the three periods of time.

Giving food to a hundred billion Buddhas of the three periods of time does not equal giving food to a single one who is without thoughts, without dwelling, without cultivation, and without accomplishment.

Because Aniruddha made offerings to a Pratyekabuddha with a true heart, as a good retribution in every life he was extremely wealthy. If he was not a prince, then he was a wealthy and respected individual. And so, if you want to be "not poor," you too should make offerings to the Triple Jewel; then in the future you will have a chance to be wealthy.

It is said, "It is difficult to give when one is poor." The reason Aniruddha was so wealthy is that he was able to give when he was poor. He gave his own lunch to the Triple Jewel. With that single true thought, he gained the reward of wealth.

It is also said, "It is difficult to study the Way when one has wealth and a noble status." It is hard to convince a rich person to study the Way.

The doctrines in the Sutra in Forty-two Sections are extremely important. Everyone should take note of them.

Sutra:

The various evil destinies,
Those of the hells, ghosts, and animals,
And the pain of birth, old age, sickness, and death
Are all gradually wiped away.

Outline:

K1. Universal response with body karma (continued).

Commentary:

The various evil destinies. "Various" means that there are a lot of them, not just one. In general, there are Four Evil Destinies. What are they? They are the asuras, the hell-beings, the ghosts, and the animals.

Asuras have been explained previously. They like to fight.

What are hell-beings? How are the hells created? The hells are a creation of people's karmic obstacles. According to the type of evil karma one creates, one will fall into the corresponding type of hell. There are many types of hells. They are explained in detail in the Earth Store Sutra, which says there are eighteen major hells and five hundred lesser ones. There are many hells.

Now, are the hells made in advance like the prisons in this world? No. The hells manifest through the evil karma of each person. If you create evil karma by killing people, you will fall into the "hell for killers." The same applies to other evil acts, such as setting fires. The type of hell depends on the type of karma. It is not fixed. When the karma is exhausted, the hell is then empty. Before it is ended, the hell is still there.

In Manchuria there was a man named Mr. Pig Foot Liu. His family name was Liu and he had a hoof instead of a foot. He was able to remember the events of his past three lives.

In one life he was born into a very wealthy family. When he was born, his father was in his forties. When the child Pig Foot Liu was thirteen, he was married to a wife who was two years his senior. Although the father was then in his fifties, his lust was still going strong, so he took a young wife who was about the same age as the son's wife. A couple years later, Pig Foot Liu had a son. The son was married when he was about thirteen, and the wife was also a couple years older than her husband.

At that time, Pig Foot Liu did not believe in Buddhism. His parents had both died, and only his father's young wife was left. Pig Foot Liu thought she was very beautiful, and he appropriated her for himself. Then Pig Foot Liu's son died, and attracted to his son's wife, he took her, too. So he was carrying on an affair with his stepmother and his daughter-in-law! He was in his mid-twenties at that time.

When Pig Foot Liu was in his forties, he woke up. "I have certainly amassed some terrible karma in this life!" he thought. "I took my stepmother and my daughter-in-law as wives." He started believing in Buddhism and took up recitation of the Vajra (Diamond) Sutra.

In his late forties, after reciting the Sutra for ten years, he died and went to meet King Yama, the cruel, black-faced Lord of the Dead.

"Since you created so much evil karma," King Yama said, "I am going to put you in the Hell of Boiling Oil where you will be fried." He charged two ghosts with the task of taking him off to the oil pot, but there was someone standing by who said, "You cannot do that."

"Why not?" asked King Yama.

"Because he has recited the Vajra Sutra, and he has still got it in his belly. He should first be reborn until he uses up all the Vajra Sutra, and then you can french fry him."

So he went to be reborn as a person, this time in a very poor household. His mother and father sold snacks for a living, and from a very early age he was fond of eating. He ate so much that soon he had a very big belly. When he was five years old, he died from a bloated stomach. After he died, his parents were curious to see what was in his big belly, so they cut him open. There they found a substance as solid as diamond. At that point, the ghosts standing by said, "Oh, it is time now. We can take him to the oil pot and fry him."

The ghosts then took him to King Yama who pronounced that he could be reborn as a pig. As a pig, he was fed until he was plump, and then slaughtered and eaten.

When he got back to King Yama again, King Yama was ready to send him through the frying punishment, but the offender spoke up and said, "You do not have to fry me. Let me go back as a person but give me one pig hoof as proof. I will urge people in the world not to commit offenses."

King Yama thought that was a good idea, and so that was what happened. His surname was Liu, and because of his hoof, most people called him Mr. Pig Foot Liu. I met the man personally and talked to him for a long time, so I am very clear about his circumstances. This is how the evil destinies get created. People create their own hells. Hells are very dangerous.

In Harbin, where I am from, there was a Dharma Master named Chengyi who was once so sick that he thought he had died. After he died, he went down a road to a place not too far away from his temple and was reborn there. What was he reborn as? As a pig! When he saw that he himself was a pig, he refused to suckle, and then he died of starvation. At that point, his spirit reentered the body of Dharma Master Chengyi.

He then woke up and told people around him about what he had just experienced. "I have recovered from my illness. I was just reborn as a pig. Let me take you to the spot, and we will have a look. There are seven piglets in the litter. I was reborn as one of them. I was the one who refused to take milk and starved."

Several Dharma Masters accompanied him to the spot, and sure enough, they found a litter of seven piglets, and one was dead. I also met that Dharma Master.

It is not at all easy to be reborn as a person. A human body is very difficult to obtain.

The Buddhadharma is not easy to get to hear. You figure it out. Of all the millions of people in America, how many come on any given night to listen to the Sutra lectures? Very, very few. It is difficult to meet a Good and Wise Advisor who really understands the Buddhadharma. Some who claim to be teachers are not clear about principles, so they say things to you that are unclear.

Those of the hells, ghosts, and animals. The destiny of hungry ghosts is also a result of karmic power. Hungry ghosts have bellies as big as drums and throats as thin as needles. The things we eat turn into fire when they enter the mouths of hungry ghosts. This happens because their karmic obstacles are so heavy. For instance, the gods see water as crystal. People see it as water, fish see it as their abode, and ghosts see it as fire. This shows the power of karma. It influences what one experiences. Beings see the same thing in different ways.

It is also very easy to get reborn as an animal, such as a pig, a chicken, or a horse. These kinds of animals were formerly people. What kind of people? People who were not filial to their parents and who did not respect their teachers and elders. People like that get caught up in the animal kingdom.

People who are fond of eating meat also create ties with the creatures whose flesh they consume. By eating a certain kind of flesh, they establish a close connection with that animal, and the future is then very dangerous for them.

"The various evil destinies" then, include the Four Evil Destinies of hells, hungry ghosts, animals, and asuras.

And the pain of birth, old age, sickness, and death. In human life, there are Three Sufferings:

1. The Suffering within Suffering
2. The Suffering of Decay
3. The Suffering of Process

An example of Suffering within Suffering is to be penniless and also without any food to eat or any place to live. This suffering is experienced by poor people. Lacking the very necessities of life, they cannot even find work. This kind of suffering is not easy to bear.

But wealthy people suffer even more. They experience the Suffering of Decay. Having money, they have to continuously calculate about it. "I will put this much in the bank. I will take this much out and put it into a business venture. I will take that much…" and on it goes like that all day long. They keep on counting their money until their hair turns white, their teeth fall out, their eyes stop working, and their ears go deaf. But then trouble comes. The robbers get their number. They break in at night and pick the safe clean.

People in poverty get accustomed to their suffering, but when the Suffering of Decay hits wealthy people, they cannot take it. It is very bitter.

Well, then, if you are neither rich nor poor, there is no suffering, right? There is still suffering; the Suffering of Process. Everyone goes through the process of aging. From youth, people pass into middle age, and then become old. Once they are old, they die. This process never stops. It continues with every passing thought. This is the Suffering of Process.

Then there are the Eight Sufferings; and even Eight Sufferings are not very many, because suffering does not stop with eight kinds. There are thousands upon millions of kinds of sufferings. You could never count how many sufferings there are.

Well, what is the greatest suffering? Being a person. It is much more pleasant to be an animal than to be a person. So what can you be that is not suffering? Well, being a Buddha is not suffering. Why do I say that it is more pleasant to be an animal than to be a person? Because, animals do not have to worry about clothes to wear, food to eat, or a place to live. Their lives happen very naturally, so they never worry about anything. But, when one is a person, there are just too much suffering.

Now, we are going to talk about the Eight Sufferings. They are:

1. The suffering of birth
2. The suffering of old age
3. The suffering of sickness
4. The suffering of death
5. The suffering of being apart from those you love
6. The suffering of being together with those you hate
7. The suffering of not getting what you seek
8. The suffering of the raging blaze of the Five Skandhas

And among these eight, which one is the worst? I believe the worst is the suffering of birth; because if you were not born, then the others would not happen. And you say, "Well, what's so much suffering about being born, anyway?" I know you have forgotten, so I am going to remind you.

How is it that you got born? Birth comes from the union of the father's essence and the mother's blood; and there also has to be what is called the "intermediate skandha body," which enters the womb.

Once you are in the womb, the first few weeks are simply the development of a jelly-like substance; but after the seventh week, feeling arises. And once the fetus develops a sense of feeling, then if the mother drinks something cold, it feels like it is standing on a mountain of ice—extremely uncomfortable. If the mother drinks something hot, then it is just as if the fetus is plunged into hot water and scalded. So even in the womb one experiences the two unpleasant sensations of cold and heat. If the mother stoops over, then the embryo feels as though it is being crushed by Mount Tai.

But the birth is the worst experience; it is like two mountains crashing together—like the Hell of Crashing Mountains. And so, of course, the first thing a child does after being born is scream, "Ku a, ku a!" [The Chinese character ku means “suffering,” and it sounds the same as another word ku that means “to cry”.]

And so it is said that human birth feels the same as when a live tortoise has its shell ripped off—it is that painful. But as you grow up, you forget the suffering of birth. You pass through your prime and get old without even realizing it. There is also tremendous suffering connected with old age. For instance, your hearing goes bad; you don't even know if people are scolding you. And your eyesight goes dim, so you cannot see things clearly anymore. The teeth fall out; the tongue does not, but the teeth do. You never heard of anyone losing his tongue, and the reason for that is that the tongue is yielding and supple.

One time I asked an old fellow about this, I said, "Teeth fall out when you get old, but have you ever met anyone who lost his tongue?"

He said, "Never. Have you?"

And I said, "Look, I am a lot younger than you—you are almost ninety—and since you have not ever seen it, how would you expect me to have ever seen it?"

Then I asked him, "Do you know why your tongue does not fall out, but your teeth do? It is because the teeth are too rigid, so they fall out. But the tongue is supple and yielding, so it does not fall out."

And he said, "Oh!"

And I said, "You are awfully old now, you had better be careful not to be too rigid. Take this lesson from your teeth."

Then you say, "What is so bad about having the teeth fall out?"

Well, you lose your appetite—nothing tastes good anymore. Something may look and smell good, but when you put it in your mouth and gum it around, you cannot even chew it up. You end up swallowing it whole, which makes it very hard to digest. So, do you think that is suffering, or not? And also your face gets all wrinkled. It is said that people come to have "skin like a chicken and hair like a crane." If you have ever seen a plucked chicken, you can see that its skin is all bumpy and wrinkled. And "hair like a crane" means that your hair turns totally white. But, of course, that does not apply to Westerners, because when infants are first born in the West, they are towheaded—they have flaxen hair at birth; they do not even wait until they get old to have white hair.

Another point of interest is that although Westerners may be born with flaxen hair, their hair does not turn black, and yet black hair can turn white. But then again, sometimes it does happen. For instance, when I was in Hong Kong, my hair turned totally white. Why? Because I was overseeing the construction of a temple. I erected three temples in Hong Kong, and it was such a strain on my body and mind that my hair turned totally white. Then I took a look and thought, "Oh, this is really something. I had better not tax my mind so much!" Then I just put everything down, and my hair turned black again. From this, you can see that nothing is fixed.

If do not believe that old age entails suffering, wait till you are eighty or ninety and nothing you eat tastes good anymore. Then you will remember, "When I was younger, I did not believe that Dharma Master when he talked about the suffering of old age. Now I know that it is really true." But by then, it will be too late to start cultivating the Way.

There are many kinds of sicknesses. You might get a headache, or your feet hurt, or sometimes your whole body aches. In general, if your heart, liver, kidneys, spleen, or lungs are ailing, it is a lot of suffering.

Another truly terrible suffering is death; in fact, it is the worst. It is easy to die, but once you are dead, the important question is where you will go. After you die, will you go to the hells? Will you become an animal? Will you be reborn as a person? No one can give you any insurance.

And so, that is birth, old age, sickness, and death—they are all suffering.

Why was it that Shakyamuni Buddha left home? It was because he came to realize that birth, old age, sickness, and death are not easy to endure.

When Prince Siddhartha was nineteen years old, he wanted to see the sights outside the palace. So one day he went to the city's east gate. There he saw a woman in the process of delivering a baby. The Prince asked his attendant, "What is happening?" He replied, "She is giving birth to a child." Looking at the woman who seemed to be enduring an extremely painful event and the newborn child crying loudly, the Prince returned home unhappily.

The next day, the Prince went to the city's southern gate. There he saw a very old man. His hair was totally white and his eyes were dim. His back was hunched and his legs were too weak to walk. The Prince asked in surprise, "What is wrong with that man? Why has he become that way?" His attendant answered, "This man is already old. He has too many years. That is why he is that way." Upon hearing this, the Prince became upset and quickly returned to his palace.

On the third day, the Prince went to the city's west gate. There he saw a sick person. Saddened, the Prince returned to the palace.

On the fourth day, the Prince went to the city's north gate. There lay a dead person. "What is the matter with that person?" asked the Prince. The attendant said, "This man already died." The Prince again felt extremely depressed.

The Prince had witnessed the suffering of birth, old age, sickness, and death for himself, and he realized this was the process that human beings have to pass through. He felt very sad and wanted to go back to the palace. Right at that moment, a left-home person appeared. The Prince asked his attendant, "Who is this person? What is he doing?" His attendant then went to talk to that cultivator. The cultivator said, "I am a left-home person. I investigate and study the Buddha Way in order to be liberated from the suffering of birth, old age, sickness, and death."

At that time the Prince had not yet become a Buddha. But when he heard that by cultivating the Way he could avoid birth, old age, sickness, and death, he said, "Can I cultivate in the same way you do?"

The monk replied, "Anybody can."

Then the Prince returned to the palace, and accompanied by one who was later known as Venerable Upali, he ran away.

Shakyamuni Buddha was totally disillusioned by birth, old age, sickness, and death. He did not know where he had come from at birth or where he would go when he died. And so he left the home-life and practiced the Way with the intent to end birth and death. He went into the mountains and cultivated for six years trying to avoid birth, old age, sickness, and death.

Nobody who gets born can avoid dying. Some deaths are good and some are terrible. Some people die from sickness; some people starve to death; some people die from the fatigue of toil; some people die from quarreling—they have a fight and kill each other; then there is war, and people die on the battlefield; others die in automobile accidents or get crushed in an avalanche.

There are many different kinds of deaths. Some people die from accidental poisoning; some people commit suicide by taking poison, or in other ways. Some people have no wish to die, but they die; some wish to die, but they cannot. Just death alone contains myriad distinctions.

As there are different kinds of death, so are there different retributions or rewards that follow death. How do they differ? For instance, if someone dies by accident—as in an automobile accident, or by drowning, or by being burned in a fire—he then turns into a ghost or a spirit, but he does not go before King Yama, because King Yama pays no attention to him. The other ghosts do not pay any attention to this kind of spirit, either.

You say, "In that case, they are really free!" But, they are just free ghosts, not free people. Of course, if people are free, often they just take advantage of situations and do not follow the rules. The same thing happens with a ghost who is free—he tends not to follow the rules. People who die in this way may try to catch some other persons to turn into ghosts to take their place. That is why oftentimes when there is an accident in a certain place, within three years after it, there will be another one. The reason is that the ghost that died by accident is just waiting for the opportunity to catch someone else to replace him, because he would not get a chance at rebirth until he can get someone to take his place. If he does not get another ghost to represent him, then he just remains there forever, ignored. That is another kind of death.

If you kill yourself, say for instance from taking poison, you go to the hells. And the punishments are terrible. If, for example, you took poison to die, then you will go to the hell where you have to drink molten iron. You burn up all your insides—your stomach, your intestines—and then you die. But then a "clever" wind blows and revives you and brings you back to life. Then you have to drink the molten iron again, and then you die again from the burns, and then the wind blows and you come back to life again. This process goes on unceasingly all day. It is unbearable. But, if you can recite the name of Guanyin Bodhisattva, the text says, the various kinds of sufferings are all gradually wiped away. Guanshiyin Bodhisattva can gradually eliminate and eradicate the sufferings of birth, old age, sickness, and death.

We have already discussed four of the sufferings. Next we will talk about the suffering of being apart from those we love.

Everybody knows what love is. Some people love wealth; others love beautiful forms or fame. If people who love wealth are separated from it, that is known as the suffering of being apart from what one loves. How might this happen? Suppose someone is very wealthy—he has a flourishing business, but, suddenly, due to unforeseeable circumstances, he goes bankrupt. He loses everything. That is a case of being apart from what one loves. In his case, he loved money. He did not ever want to be separated from money, and then suddenly he is penniless.

Next, let's consider someone who loves beautiful forms. Men love the looks of women; women love the looks of men. Between them there is a mutual love. But if in their former lives the causes and effects were not planted correctly, then the love will not last. Something will happen, and they will have to part with each other. That is the kind of suffering that occurs between men and women when they must be apart from those they love.

Then there are those who love fame. Some people say that fame is one's second life. But sometimes your reputation gets ruined. You lose your fame. Basically, if you wanted to be well-known but then did something wrong and ruined your own reputation, that is a case of being apart from what you love—fame.

But then you say, "Well, there might be a couple who does not separate, and so they do not have to undergo the suffering of being apart from those they love."

But they might have a child who is both handsome and intelligent, and all of a sudden, unexpectedly, he dies. That is extremely hard to bear. Or suppose you are a person who is especially filial towards your parents, and then your parents die. That is another example of being apart from those you love. Or, maybe you have an excellent relationship with your spouse, and then suddenly he or she dies unexpectedly. That is also an example of being apart from those you love. The same thing applies to brothers, sisters, friends—in each case the suffering of being apart from those you love can arise.

Once you have experienced this kind of suffering, you should no longer be attached to love. You should not direct all your love towards one person. Instead, develop a kind regard for all living beings. Practice the Bodhisattva Path and save everybody. Don't only think of yourself. Think of all living beings, instead. Rescue and protect everybody. Then you will not experience the suffering of being apart from those you love.

Some people are masochists. They like to suffer. If there is no suffering, they look for it. For instance, a man gets married and then he starts worrying from morning to night that his wife will find a lover. Basically, there wasn't any suffering to begin with, but he created it. And if a woman marries a particularly handsome man, she may have the same concern, or create it. She never thinks about anything else but how her handsome husband is going to get a girlfriend. Wouldn't you say that is stupid?

Some people direct their love not at other people, but at their pets. In fact, there are people who love their cat or dog more than life itself. When the dog dies or the cat gets lost, they feel as if they had lost their very life. That is another example of being apart from those one loves.

The sixth kind of suffering is that of being together with those one hates. Of course, some people overreact and think, "Well, since love entails so much suffering, I am not going to love anybody—I will hate everybody!" So you detest everyone, and you don't love anything, including material objects. You feel that since loving is so much suffering, you do not want to love. But not loving also has its suffering. That is the suffering of being together with those you hate.

Maybe you find yourself in a circumstances in which you do not like where you are, or you do not like the people who are around you, and so you move. But then, who would have guessed that when you get to the new place, the people are all the same sort as in the place you just left, and things are just as despicable; in fact, it is even worse.

In general, the things that you most wish to avoid and the things that you detest the most are the very things that come around. It is strange how this happens. For instance, if you are afraid of cats, then from morning to night, there are cats hanging around. Suppose you hate dogs with a passion; then everywhere you go, you have dogs trailing you. Or, you hate women, but all day there are women wanting to see you. They chase after you, and you get totally fed up, so you move; but at your new place, there is another group of women just like them.

Well, how does this suffering arise? It comes from your own nature. Because your intrinsic nature does not have any samadhi, you find fault with whatever you see. Say you are in one place where you cannot get along with any of your neighbors, so you move to someplace else, and you still cannot get along with any of your new neighbors. Then that is not a question of the neighbors—it is probably a question of your lack of ability to get along. You just do not have any affinity with anyone, so nobody likes you.

You can see that the more you are attached to something, the more likely you will be separated from it. By the same token, the more you hate and wish to avoid something, the more you are going to get involved with it. These two—the suffering of love and the suffering of hate—come about because you do not truly understand the Middle Way. As soon as you go to an extreme, either of too much or of too little, you are going to suffer. If you could hold to the Middle Way, you would not suffer.

The seventh kind of suffering is that of not getting whatever one seeks. Some people work hard hoping to make a fortune, but they remain poor to the end of their lives. Some people spend their whole lives seeking for an official position, but in the end they never make it. Some people try to become famous, but they cannot make it either. Some people do not have any children, and no matter how much they try, they are never able to have a child. That is another example of not getting what one seeks.

In general, people spend their whole lives trying to get this or trying to get that, but in the end, they do not get what they want. Some people would like to get a Ph.D., but it is not their destiny to be students, because from of old they have not planted those kinds of causes. For example, there was Yao Lianghao, who became top scholar in China when he was eighty-two. But not long after he got the honor, he died. If you get something and then cannot enjoy it, that is just another version of the suffering connected with not getting what you seek.

Then there is the suffering of the raging blaze of the five skandhas: form, feeling, thought, formations, and consciousness. In the Heart Sutra, it is said,

Form does not differ from emptiness; emptiness does not differ from form. Form itself is emptiness; emptiness itself is form.

The point is, if you can see things as empty, you would not have any suffering. But, if you cannot see things as empty, then you will be burned by the five skandhas. The five skandhas are a raging blaze, but although they are so much suffering, no one can bear to separate from them.

The first seven kinds of suffering are caused by external forms of defilement. This eighth suffering is innate; it is inherent in the five skandhas from birth. It never leaves you, and even if you want to part from it, you cannot get free. This has been a discussion on the eight kinds of sufferings.

Sutra:

True Contemplator, Pure Contemplator,
Contemplator with Vast, Great Wisdom,
Compassionate Contemplator, Kind Contemplator,
May we constantly behold you with reverence!

Outline:

K2. Universal contemplation with mind karma.

Commentary:

True Contemplator, Pure Contemplator. True Contemplation is the Contemplation of True Emptiness. True Emptiness is no self, no others, no living beings, and no life span. There is no appearance of self, no appearance of others, no appearance of living beings, and no appearance of a life span. However, "no appearance" is not apart from appearance; this just means that right within the appearance itself, there is no appearance. Within the appearance of self, there is no appearance of self; within the appearance of others, there is no appearance of others; within the appearance of living beings, there is no appearance of living beings; within the appearance of a life span, there is no appearance of a life span.

There is a saying that goes,

The eyes see form, but inside there is nothing;
The ears hear defiling sounds, but the mind does not know.

It is perfectly clear that shape and form exist, and your eyes see them, so why do we say that inside there is nothing? It is because there is no attachment.

The Contemplation of True Emptiness is just likened to a great, perfect mirror. When things appear before a great and perfect mirror, they are reflected in it; when they leave, no trace is left. This is the Contemplation of True Emptiness practiced by Guanyin Bodhisattva.

Pure Contemplation is the Contemplation of Purity. Purity is the opposite of defilement. What is defilement? Anything you are attached to is a defiled thing. Anything that you have fond regard for is a defiled thing. Anything that you are greedy for is a defiled thing.

Within the Contemplation of Purity, there is no greed, hatred, or stupidity.

Take giving, for example. When most people give, they first have to think about it, "This person is related to me—as a friend, relative, or neighbor—so I will help him out by giving him something." You first figure it all out and decide to give only to the people who are closest to you, and you pay no regard to those with whom you are unfamiliar. This is called "taking care of one's relatives first, without having concern for any others; paying attention to those who are close and ignoring those who are distant."

In other words, you make distinctions. You are attached to appearances, and so your regard is not pure. But Guanyin Bodhisattva does not make distinctions between himself and others. He does not distinguish between relatives and those who are not related to him, or between those who are close and those who are distant. He simply gives.

There are three kinds of giving: the giving of wealth, the giving of Dharma, and the giving of fearlessness.

Of wealth, there are two kinds: inner wealth and outer wealth. It would probably be difficult for most people to figure out what is meant by "inner wealth," but most people would be able to figure out what is meant by "outer wealth." "Inner wealth" refers to things inside your body, and outer wealth refers to things outside your body.

The giving of outer wealth refers to the giving up of one's country, city, wife, or children. "This whole town belongs to me—I own it all—but I will give it away." In some cases, one is able to give away all one’s property and assets, or even one’s own wife and children. That is really putting everything down. That is true giving.

The giving of inner wealth means to give up one's body, nature, mind, and life to save living beings who are in need. The body refers to the entire physical body—head, eyes, brain, marrow, and so forth.

When Venerable Shariputra was trying to practice the Bodhisattva Path, someone came along and said that he really needed an eye to cure his ill mother. Shariputra then gouged out one of his eyes and gave it to that person. Who would have guessed that the person would say it was the wrong eye and then throw it on the ground? At that point, Shariputra retreated from the Bodhisattva Path—"It is too hard; I cannot do it." And so Shariputra was only able to relinquish half of his inner wealth; he could not quite part with the other half.

In general, the giving of inner wealth means giving up one's internal treasures—one's own wisdom and energy.

The giving of Dharma means to speak Dharma in order to teach and transform living beings. Of the three kinds of giving, this is the greatest. And so it is said,

Of all the kinds of giving, the greatest is the giving of Dharma.

Now, the Buddhist Lecture Hall here is not large, that is true; but then the power of the Dharma is not small, either. On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights, we have three different lectures speaking the Dharma. There probably isn’t any other Buddhist organization in America as busy as the Buddhist Lecture Hall, where people forget their very lives for the sake of the Dharma. During the day everyone has to work. Even I get involved in whatever work there is to be done, working to the point that my bones ache.

But in the evening, no matter who is lecturing, you should all come and listen. First of all, this is supporting the Way-place. If a lot of people come to the lecture, then the atmosphere is good. So if you want to support the Buddhist Lecture Hall, you do not need to make a big donation; just come to the lectures! There are those who propagate the teachings by giving lectures on the Buddhadharma, those who do publicity for the lectures, and those who support the lectures and the Way-place. By supporting the Way-place and causing it to flourish, you are also supporting Buddhism and the Triple Jewel. This is everyone’s responsibility.

Up to now, most Westerners have had a pretty childish understanding of the Buddhadharma. They do not really understand it at all. For example, there are those in America who call themselves Elders, Dharma Masters, and priests. But if you ask them what Buddhism is all about, they do not know. You have studied the Shurangama Sutra for three months, and you understand quite a bit of Buddhism now.

As to the giving of Dharma, you should take whatever Buddhadharma you understand and spread it among all people, to the point that you would not even mind going without food and sleep in order to speak Dharma. It was that way for me in the past. If someone wanted to study the Dharma, I would explain it to them even if that meant missing my lunch and sleep, until I could help them achieve a thorough understanding. I hope that all of you will be my transformation bodies and spread the Buddhadharma in this way—practice the giving of Dharma. There is much more value in spreading Dharma than in contributing any amount of money. So you should vigorously apply yourselves in studying the Dharma.

Now there are several of you who want to leave the home-life. This is very rare. You could say that we have begun something brand new in America—because for people to want to leave home to become Bhikshus and Bhikshunis is very unusual. We must establish a foundation, and each one of us should personally take responsibility for the future of Buddhism in the West. Don't just hang back and say, "Well, it has nothing to do with me. Buddhism is not my business, it is someone else's."

As far as I am concerned, as long as I have a single breath left, spreading the Buddhadharma is my personal responsibility. And if someone else wants to take responsibility for it, too—how wonderful! Do not shirk your responsibility; stand on your own, and take the task of propagating the Buddhadharma as your own. That is the first criterion for the process of giving Dharma.

The giving of fearlessness is the last one of the three kinds of giving. For instance, Guanyin Bodhisattva saves living beings from the seven difficulties, dispels the three poisons, and responds to the two kinds of seeking. That is an example of the giving of fearlessness. When people are in a terrifying situation and their very lives are at stake, if you appear in a fearless body to rescue them, then you are practicing the giving of fearlessness.

What does appearing in a fearless body mean? Well, suppose someone gets caught in a fire and is about to be burned to death; he has lost his sense of direction and cannot find his way out. And at that time, without any regard for your own physical well-being, you rush right into the blaze and pull him out. That is an extremely difficult thing to be able to do. That is an example of renouncing your own life in order to save the life of another, and that is an example of the giving of fearlessness.

Or perhaps someone falls into the sea and is just about to drown, and when you see this happening you are able to make a split-second decision without any regard for your own physical safety, and immediately jump into the sea in order to save that person’s life—that is also the giving of fearlessness. And you can extend this attitude to where you might find yourself in the midst of fighting armies and someone gets wounded in the front line—perhaps by gunfire, or by being hit by a shell—and he has right at the battlefront with his life hanging in the balance; if you can, with total disregard your own safety, without even thinking about whether or not you will live through it, go into the most dangerous spot imaginable in order to save that person’s life, that is also called the giving of fearlessness.

Or perhaps someone is persecuted by the government or is involved in some other kind of difficulty or circumstances where he is just about to be killed. If you can use any number of good and clever expedient means in order to save that person without any regard for the dangers involved, that is called “the practice of giving fearlessness.” In general, this means that whenever a person finds himself in a dangerous situation and you use courage, compassion, and heroic vigor to go in absolutely unafraid in order to save him, that is the giving of fearlessness.

You can also practice the giving of fearlessness in an indirect way, like Bodhisattva Guardian of the Earth. This Bodhisattva knew that people in a certain place needed a bridge in order to get across a river. If they tried to cross the river without a bridge, their lives would be in danger, and it would be a frightening experience for them. Since this happened in ancient times, he had to use primitive techniques. For instance, he could build a pontoon bridge of logs floating on the river with flat boards on top of them, so that people could cross the river without incurring any danger upon themselves. Of course, if there was a flood, their lives would still be endangered. However, they no longer suffered the fear of crossing that river.

When the Venerable Elder Master Hsu Yun came down from Jiuhua Mountain, remembering that there was a bridge at a particular spot on the river, he went to that place to cross the river. But the river was swollen, and the bridge had been destroyed by a flood. Since the bridge was no longer there, he accidentally fell into the river. He floated in the river for a day and a night—bobbing up and down for a total of twenty-four hours. Eventually, an old fisherman caught him in his net. Thinking that he had caught a giant fish, the old man started to pull the fish out. But on closer examination, he discovered that his "fish" was, in fact, a person wearing a monk’s robes!

Nearby there was a little temple, and so the fisherman went to alert the left-home people there. The monks recognized the Venerable Master immediately. They then set about applying artificial respiration and bringing him back to consciousness. At that point the Master truly gained a "second life."

Having escaped death after nearly drowning in the river, the Venerable Master proceeded to Gaomin Monastery. He went there to participate in a Chan session, but he was still very ill and weak from his recent ordeal. However, he did not breathe a single word about his mishap, and so nobody knew.

The Abbot then asked him to represent him as the head of the session; but the Master Hsu Yun, knowing himself that he was too sick, refused. Now, refusing to an appointment by the Abbot was considered a breach of monastic discipline. And for this, the Master was beaten with an incense board. Still, he never said a word.

The Venerable Master was the foremost monk, the loftiest good and wise advisor in all of China, but he underwent tremendous suffering at Gaomin Monastery, where everyone looked down on him. "He is just a burden to us," they said, "totally useless."

Now, back to the Bodhisattva Guardian of the Earth. He fixed the roads and bridges. When Elder Master Hsu Yun went to Yunnan, he met a monk who spent all his time fixing the roads, and this monk did not speak. That, indeed, was a transformation body of Guardian of the Earth Bodhisattva. This Bodhisattva spent all of his time guarding the earth. If there were rocks or rubble on the roads, he would remove them to one side so that people would not step on them and hurt their feet. He kept the roads in good repair. Who paid him for all his hard labor? Nobody. Now, wasn't he stupid? Wasn't he just working in vain? Well, his working in vain enabled him to become the Bodhisattva Guardian of the Earth. He cultivated to the point that he was irreversible in position, irreversible in thought, and irreversible in practice. He obtained these three kinds of irreversibility—the state of non-retreat.

If we were to discuss the giving of fearlessness we could go on and on, because the topic is very vast. In general, any time another person is afraid, you should practice this kind of giving.

Suppose a person has not eaten in a few days and is on the brink of starving to death, so that he feels he may have to steal, even though he knows that is against the law. And then, when this person is really down and out, you see him. You see that he is sallow and so think that he can hardly walk and you ask him, “What is wrong with you, are you sick?” And the person answers, “I have not eaten for days.” And you say, “Well, why don’t you come home with me and have a meal?”

Do not be like the people of Tianjin who ask you if you have eaten [a common way of greeting someone in China] and when you say you have not, they say, “Well, (let’s) go home and eat.” It is not clear whether they are asking you to go to their home or to your own home. So, even if you were positively starving, you would not dare assume that they were inviting you to their home, so you say, “Okay, I will go to my own home and eat.”

If you provide food to the starving, clothing to those who are cold, and shelter for those who are homeless, then you are practicing the giving of fearlessness. On the other hand, people should not rely on others to provide for them day after day. There is a saying,

You can give a person a meal,
But you can't feed him forever.

Every able-bodied person should work to support himself. You should not think, "When it is time for lunch, I will just go find someone who cultivates the Bodhisattva path and ask him to practice giving." If you are really going through hard times and have nothing to eat, then it is okay. But you should not make it a regular practice. As long as you have the strength, you should stand on your own two feet and make a contribution to the world. Do not just live off the world's resources. Helping the world means benefiting others, not hoping that others will benefit you. Be self-reliant; do not depend on other people.

Contemplator with Vast, Great Wisdom. Guanyin Bodhisattva uses the regard of great wisdom to cross over all living beings. Compassionate Contemplator, Kind Contemplator. The Bodhisattva also has universal compassionate regard for all living beings. The contemplation of compassion pulls living beings out of suffering; the contemplation of kindness gives living beings joy. This kind of joy is not temporary happiness, but an everlasting bliss that transcends the mundane. The Bodhisattva gives Dharma to living beings causing them to gain the true understanding of the Buddhadharma and thereby not do any more upside-down things. That is called the giving of happiness.

What is meant by upside-down things? Let me tell you truly and honestly—even though there are those who would not believe me. One such thing is getting drunk. People who are drunk think they have turned into gods. They stagger around bumping into things left and right and think it is great. It gets to the point that they are totally oblivious and cannot tell which direction is which. Wouldn’t you say that is upside-down? Under the influence of intoxicants, even a perfectly intelligent person can commit murder, arson, and all sorts of crimes.

When I was at the bus stop this morning, a drunkard came up to me and asked for money. When I smelled the reek of alcohol on his breath, I started walking away, but he followed me, determined to get some money. What for? To buy more alcohol. I guess he had not had enough yet. Isn’t that upside-down?

This reminds me of another incident that also happened at a bus stop. That time, a total stranger walked up to me and without saying a word, knelt down and kowtowed to me. Then he got up and walked off. Now, he was not bowing to me because he wanted money. I do not know why he did it. He did not know me, and I did not know him, yet among all those people he came and bowed to me. Who knows if he was a ghost or a spirit? It is really strange. He did not look drunk to me, so he must have been inspired somehow. Mostly it is ghosts and spirits who bow to me when they see me. But this person bowed to me very respectfully, and when he got up he kept his head lowered and did not dare look straight at my face. Perhaps there was a ghost on him who recognized me.

If drinking alcohol is upside-down, what about smoking? Smoking is even more so. Why? Your insides are clean to begin with. “Dharma Master, you are wrong. My insides are full of excrement and urine.” True, but that kind of uncleanliness is okay. If you smoke, you put smoke and tar in your body, and that is really unclean.

Have you seen the black stuff that coats the inside of a used pipe? When you inhale the smoke, your lungs get coated with that stuff too. You do not realize it because you cannot see it, but your lungs get coated with every puff you take, just like a mirror getting covered with layer upon layer of dust. Basically your insides are clean, but you want to cover them with filth. Isn’t that upside-down?

When people smoke opium, they feel so energetic and strong that they think they can ascend to the heavens right then and there. But after a while, they feel extremely uncomfortable all over, to the point that they want to crawl into the hells because they think the hells must be better than what they are going through. Wouldn’t you say that is upside-down?

There are many other upside-down things that people do. I hope people who smoke will quit smoking soon, and those who drink will quickly give up alcohol. Lazy people should learn to be a little more vigorous. Vigorous people, however, should not learn to be lazy. They should do more wholesome and virtuous deeds.

If you never do wholesome deeds, you would not accrue any virtue. Where does virtue come from? From good deeds. If you do as many good deeds as you can, you will naturally accumulate virtue and get rid of laziness. If you do not do good deeds, but you spend hard-earned money to go see plays or buy frivolous things, then that is called being upside-down.

If you spend your money on useful things, then you are not being upside-down. Wasting money on useless things is upside-down. So upside-downness takes many forms. Guanshiyin Bodhisattva points out your upside-down conduct and tells you not to be upside-down, causing you to obtain genuine and everlasting happiness. That is “kindness.” “Compassion” pulls living beings out of suffering.

The Bodhisattva eradicates not only your present suffering, but your suffering in life after life throughout limitless eons. But you must have faith. If you have faith, Guanyin Bodhisattva will regard you with kindness and compassion. If you do not have faith, the Bodhisattva’s kindness and compassion cannot melt your cold stance. What is your cold stance? Just your lack of faith. If you have faith, you will unite with the kind regard and compassionate regard of Guanyin Bodhisattva. And when that happens, you can leave suffering and attain happiness.

What is real suffering? Affliction is. If you do not have any affliction, that is happiness. The reason you do not feel happy is because you have affliction. So Guanyin Bodhisattva can pull you out of your affliction and help you attain genuine happiness.

May we constantly behold you with reverence! You will continually gaze up at Guanyin Bodhisattva with respect. You wish to always look upon that virtuous and kind countenance. The more you look, the happier you become. For instance, bowing the Great Compassion Repentance is a ceremony to show your respect to Guanyin Bodhisattva.

It is said that Americans do not like to bow. They say, "Well, I believe in my own Buddha." Well, if you truly believed in your own Buddha, then there would not be any you—there would not be any "your own." It is just because you have not found your own Buddha that you cannot recognize an external Buddha when you see one. If you really believed in your own Buddha, it would not keep you from bowing.

Bowing—that is, kowtowing, a full bow to the floor—represents the most respectful of gestures. In Buddhism, this is a kind of formal courtesy. If you cannot even perform this kind of courtesy, how can you call yourself someone who believes in the Buddha?

There is a certain doctor who commanded respect from many people; but he himself told everyone not to bow to the Buddha. When others bowed to the Buddha, he would stand there like a wooden stick. That was because he had not really broken through the mark of his ego.

People refuse to bow to the Buddha because of arrogance. "Me? Why should I bow to the Buddha?" If you are self-satisfied and proud to the point that you cannot even bow, then how in the world do you expect to be able to study Buddhism?

Sutra:

Undefiled pure light,
The sun of wisdom that breaks through the darkness
Is able to quell calamities of wind and fire
As it shines on all worlds.

Commentary:

These four lines of text are ineffably wonderful. They can cure eye sicknesses. If you have problems with your eyes and you constantly recite this four-line verse, your eye disease will be cured. However, although your eye disease may be cured, you still have to go ahead and bring forth wisdom in order to be totally cured. If you do not have wisdom, then even though you may temporarily get better, your illness could crop up again in the future.

In general, if you truly believe in the power of the Sutra text, then Guanyin Bodhisattva's awesome spiritual strength will aid you and bring about an efficacious effect. But if you do not believe, nothing special will happen. There would not be any effect. That is why it is said,

The Buddhadharma is like a great sea,
But only through faith can you enter.

The verse says, Undefiled pure light. Defilement refers to dust, dirt, and unclean things. Being without any defilement means that you do not have any random thinking. For every random thought that you strike up, you add another layer of dust upon your original pure nature. The more polluted thinking you have, the dustier it gets.

Therefore, you need to "understand the mind and see the nature." That is what people who investigate Chan aim to do. To "understand the mind" is to be "undefiled." To "see your nature" is to see the "pure light" mentioned here. Your original mind is your permanently-dwelling true mind, the Treasury of the Thus Come One. Understanding your mind and seeing your nature simply means understanding your inherent Treasury of the Thus Come One.

The sun of wisdom that breaks through the darkness. The wisdom-sun means that wisdom is like the sun. The kind of darkness referred to here is a lack of faith, a lack of wisdom, a lack of vows, and a lack of a resolve to truly practice.

Darkness also refers to not studying or upholding the precepts, not cultivating the power of samadhi, and not developing the power of wisdom. If you do not study precepts, samadhi, and wisdom, you are walking a dark path. If you do cultivate according to precepts, samadhi, and wisdom, then you are walking on a bright path.

We can also explain it in this way. Your desire to listen to the Buddhadharma is the light. But someone might think, "I have listened for so many days and it does not really have much meaning. The Dharma Master has been sitting up there on that platform talking and talking about the same old thing. I have heard it over and over. He says that people should get rid of greed, hatred, and stupidity and should cultivate precepts, samadhi, and wisdom. I am tired of listening." Some of you feel tired of listening? That is darkness.

However, there are those of you who do not grow weary of listening. The more you hear, the more you want to listen, even to the point that you just listen to the sound of the Dharma Master's voice and the subtle and incredible doctrines of the Sutra. And when you finish listening, it is as if the Dharma Master were still speaking in your ear." From morning till night, I can hear the voice of the Dharma Master beside my ear speaking Dharma to me." That is the light.

Right now, I suddenly remembered something that happened to me in Hong Kong. A certain laywoman came to see me, and after she saw me, what do you think happened? In everything she did, whether it was walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, she always saw me. What do you suppose she thought? She thought, "Oh, that Dharma Master is a demon! Otherwise, why would I see him all the time?" Here she was, able to hear a Dharma Master speaking Dharma at all times, and she thought he was a demon. I suppose that if she saw a demon, she would have thought it was a Buddha. So, she started slandering me and even wanted to strike me. Within a month, she contracted cancer and died. Basically, I wanted to save her, but she thought I was a demon. She refused my rescue. And that is the way people are; they think the true is false, and the false is true.

Guanyin Bodhisattva uses the Contemplation of True Emptiness to break through the delusion of views and thought.

The "delusion of views" is defined as "giving rise to greed when faced with a state." You get caught up with something that appears before you, and then give rise to greed and attachment.

The "delusion of thought" is defined as "giving rise to discrimination because one is confused about principle."

By means of the Contemplation of True Emptiness, Guanyin Bodhisattva breaks through the darkness of the delusion of views and thought. He brings forth the virtue of Prajna.

When Guanyin Bodhisattva cultivates the Contemplation of Purity, he breaks through the darkness of delusion like dust and sand, and is certified to the virtue of Liberation.

When Guanyin Bodhisattva cultivates the Contemplation of Wisdom, he breaks through the darkness of the delusion of ignorance, thus attaining the virtue of the Dharma-body.

When one is certified to the Secret Treasury of the Three Virtues, then Prajna, Liberation, and the Dharma-body will come about. One has to cultivate the Three Contemplations—the Contemplation of True Emptiness, the Contemplation of Purity, and the Contemplation of Wisdom—to be certified to the Three Virtues, and to cut off the delusion of views and thought, the delusion like dust and sand, and the delusion of ignorance. That was what is meant by "the sun of wisdom that breaks through all darkness." The wisdom here refers to these contemplations—the contemplations themselves are wisdom.

This wisdom sun is able to quell calamities of wind and fire. "Calamities" here refers to the three calamities of water, fire, and wind. Water floods the First Dhyana; fire burns through the Second Dhyana; wind destroys the Third Dhyana.

At the end of the kalpa [eon], the first of the three calamities appears. The heavens of the First Dhyana are flooded by water. One does not know where this water comes from—whether it comes from the stars, moon, heavenly rivers, or earth—but it rises up in massive waves, and not only does it drown humankind, it also drowns the gods of the First Dhyana Heavens.

Therefore, when the first calamity of water hits, almost everything is destroyed. Somehow a few people remain, and the population starts to multiply again. Eventually it gets overpopulated, people's offenses are redoubled, and things get very complicated.

Then the second calamity, that of fire, hits. This kalpic fire burns clear through the Second Dhyana Heavens. The gods in these heavens are burned by this fire. Why is it that fire can reach the Second Dhyana? It is because the gods in these heavens still have fire affliction, whereas the gods in the First Dhyana Heavens still have water affliction. The fire inside their intrinsic nature catches with the fire in the world, bringing about a huge conflagration.

At that time seven suns appear in the sky. The mountains, rivers, and great earth all turn into burning coals, and people are charred to a crisp. Even the seas are all burned dry. The seas turn into dry land, and the land becomes high mountains. Then the high mountains become great seas. Many strange events occur between heaven and earth.

After the disaster of fire, a very long time passes, and those people who are left in the world propagate the species until once again the world becomes overpopulated. Then the third disaster, that of wind, hits. "Wind destroys the Third Dhyana." Not only does the wind rip through people's houses and buildings, but the mountains, rivers, and earth are all ripped to bits. In fact, the wind reaches up to the gods in the Third Dhyana Heavens. Even the gods cannot avoid this disaster. So there is a verse that goes:

In the Six Desire Heavens, there are the Five Signs of Decay;
The Third Dhyana has the disaster of wind.
Even if you cultivate clear to the Heaven of Neither Perception nor Non-perception,
It is not as good as going to the Western Land and coming back again.

Before I go on, I will explain what the five signs of decay are, because although some people have heard them, there are still others who have not. If you have heard them, it would not hurt to review them. If you have not, then listen closely.

The Five Marks of Decay of the Gods:

1. The flower garlands that adorn their heads wilt. The flowers that adorn the heads of the gods are not like the flowers grown in the human realm. These flowers grow quite naturally right on the heads of the gods—it is a natural adornment for them. But when the five signs of decay appear, the flowers wilt. Before these signs appear, the flowers are always fresh. So, when your flowers start to wilt, then you know you have just about had it.

2. Their clothes get dirty. The cloths of the gods are not like those of people. We have to wash our clothes once or twice a week, because we know that if we do not wash them, they will be dirty. The clothes of the gods never get dirty, because there isn’t anything to soil them in the heavens. But when the five signs of decay appear, their clothes get soiled. So, when you are up there and you see that your clothes get dirty, you know that you do not have long.

This is similar to when people are about to die, even before they stop breathing, various places on their body will start to grow worms. Ordinarily this would not happen, but when they are just about to die and stop breathing, many parts of their bodies start to grow worms. And that is the appearance of death here in the human realm. But, for the gods, the sign of death is that their clothes get dirty. This is a kind of karmic retribution.

The reason we have so much dirt here on earth is that we have too much false thinking. That is why there is such an awful lot of filth in the world. Our false thoughts are exactly the same as dirt. So the filth comes from false thoughts.

3. Their armpits perspire. The bodies of the gods are not like those of humans—they never perspire. But with the five signs of decay start to appear, their armpits sweat.

4. Their bodies smell bad. Basically the gods’ bodies always emit a fragrance, but certainly not because they use perfume or apply scented powders. Their bodies naturally exude this fragrance. But when the five signs of decay appear, they lose their fragrance and start to smell bad.

5. They cannot sit still. Basically, the gods are really comfortable. From morning to night they just sit there in meditation, investigating Chan. They do not have anything else to do. But when the five signs of decay appear, they can no longer sit still. They sit for awhile and then jump up; but once they stand up, they want to sit down again. And once they have settled down, they rise again. So they keep getting up and sitting down again. And the moment they lose consciousness, their life in the heaven ends, and they fall. So the first line of the poem says, “In the Six Desire Heavens, there are the Five Signs of Decay.”

But then in the First Dhyana there is the disaster of water, in the Second Dhyana there is the disaster of fire, and “the Third Dhyana has the disaster of wind.” That is because the gods of the Third Dhyana heavens still have the wind of affliction within their nature. When a hurricane or tornado occurs in the worldly realm, it connects with the wind in their nature, and so they are destroyed by the disaster of wind.

“Even if you cultivate clear to the Heaven of Neither Perception nor Non-perception,” where your heavenly life span is 80,000 great kalpas, nonetheless, when your heavenly reward ends, you still fall back into the human realm, or even worse, into the hells, among the hungry ghosts, or among the animals. So it is very dangerous.

The last line of the verse says that “It is not as good as going to the Western Land and coming back again.” Cultivating to any of those heavens is not as good as getting reborn in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, becoming a boat of compassion like Guanyin Bodhisattva and coming back to teach and transform living beings. That is a safer path to take.

Fortunately, the light of the sun of Guanyin Bodhisattva’s wisdom can quell all disasters and break up all darkness as it shines a universal light on all worlds. The world that we common people live in now is called the Land in Which the Common and Sagely Live Together.

The great wisdom of Guanyin Bodhisattva also illumines the Land of Expedients with Residue. That is where those of the Two Vehicles live. "Expedients" refers to clever, provisional means. "With Residue" means that there is still something left, because the inhabitants of this world have not yet completely cut off all their afflictions.

Guanyin Bodhisattva dwells in the Adorned Land of Actual Reward, which is the land where all the Bodhisattvas dwell. The Buddhas dwell in the Pure Land of Eternally Stillness and Light.

With his great wisdom and great knowledge, Guanyin Bodhisattva universally illumines all of these lands, and so the text says his light "shines on all worlds."

Sutra:

Compassionate substance: the thunder of precepts.
Kind intent: a wondrous great cloud.
He rains down sweet dew and Dharma rain,
Which extinguish the flames of affliction.

Outline:

K3. Universal speaking with mouth karma.

Commentary:

Compassionate substance: the thunder of precepts. Compassionate substance means that Guanyin Bodhisattva takes the substance of compassion as his Dharma substance. Where does this compassionate substance come from? It comes from precepts. When Guanyin Bodhisattva first began to cultivate, he held the precepts purely, and from this purity he brought forth vast kindness and compassion, the kindness that includes even those with whom one does not have affinities. This Dharma substance is like thunder—it emits a thunderous roar, and living beings are awakened by it. The blind can see it and even the deaf can hear the sound of this thunder. And so it says, "Compassionate substance: the thunder of precepts."

Kind intent: a wondrous great cloud. Guanyin Bodhisattva uses level and equal kindness and compassion to help living beings. The Sutra said, "His kind eyes watching living beings." With kindness and compassion, he bestows joy upon living beings in a level and equal way.

Acting like a wondrous, huge cloud, he rains down sweet dew and Dharma rain. Sweet dew is actually the water of immortality found in the heavens. Why are the heavenly gods immortal? Because they drink sweet dew. So you say, "Even the gods take their vitalizers. It is no wonder that these days people who want to get enlightened pop all sorts of pills." But the heavenly medicine is natural—it is not manufactured. When the gods imbibe this medicine, they never age. Now Guanyin Bodhisattva has a wonderful, great cloud that lets fall sweet dew, the elixir of immortality, which extinguishes the flames of affliction and puts an end to the sufferings of birth, old age, sickness, and death.

People in this world have afflictions, and it is as though they were being scorched by flames. Why don’t you become a Buddha? Because you have afflictions. Why haven't you become enlightened? Because you have afflictions. Why aren't you truly free? Because you have afflictions.

Another name for afflictions is attachments. Where do attachments stem from? They come from selfishness. Why are you attached? Because you are selfish and you want to seek private gains. If you have only the common good in mind, if you are truly public-spirited, then what attachments could you possibly have?

If you are not selfish, you would not be attached; if you do not have attachments, you would not be afflicted; and if you do not have afflictions, you will be liberated. Once you are liberated, you are enlightened. To become enlightened is just to realize Buddhahood.

Afflictions are the very worst thing to have, yet people cannot stand to be apart from them. Whether moving or still, awake or asleep, they do not ever want to be apart from afflictions.

You say, "Well, I am happy all the time, and I do not have any afflictions." Well, if you have attained genuine bliss, then of course you are not afflicted. But if you have not attained genuine bliss and you fake it—you force yourself to believe that you are happy—then it is not true happiness. Inside, the affliction is still heavy. And one day it will turn up—it will explode. It is like smothering weeds with a large rock—so that the weeds would not be able to grow. But once you remove the rock, they will quickly flourish. If you have not attained true bliss, your afflictions will still remain.

Of the Four Vast Vows that the Bodhisattva makes, the first one is, "Living beings are boundless, I vow to save them all." Why does Guanyin Bodhisattva come to this world? Only because living beings are boundless, and he has vowed to save them all.

The second vast vow is, "Afflictions are endless, I vow to sever them all." Does Guanyin Bodhisattva have afflictions? No, he has cut them off, but he takes living beings' afflictions as his own. Seeing that living beings have not cut off their afflictions, he makes the vow: "Afflictions are endless, I vow to cut them off." Basically, afflictions are endless, like waves on water: The first wave subsides, and the next one rises. That wave subsides, and yet another wave rises up in its wake. This goes on continuously without cease. Afflictions are just like that—endless.

The third vast vow is, "Dharma-doors are limitless, I vow to study them all." Some people study one or two Sutras, and they become self-satisfied. They say they already understand Buddhism. But the Buddhism they understand is not as much as a single drop within the great sea of the Buddhadharma. These people who become self-satisfied are just like an ant who goes to the ocean to get a drink of water: He takes his fill and says that he has drunk up the entire sea. Actually the ant only filled up his own stomach—he has not even drunk a single drop of the great sea.

The last vast vow is "The Buddha Way is unsurpassed, I vow to realize it." There is nothing higher than the Buddha Way, so everyone should resolve to become a Buddha. Do not look down on yourself. Thinking of yourself as originally being a Buddha. However, that does not mean you are a Buddha now. Basically we were all completely endowed with the Buddha-nature. But now, because we do not know how to cultivate, we do not possess the Three Bodies of the Buddha, the Four Types of Wisdom, the Five Eyes, or the Six Spiritual Penetrations.

Guanshiyin Bodhisattva bases his teaching on the Four Vast Vows, and he uses the sweet dew of Dharma rain to cause all beings to become refreshed and content, so they would not have any more afflictions.

Sutra:

In the midst of contention, when faced with lawsuits,
Or when someone is terrified on the battlefield,
If he evokes the strength of Guanyin,
All his many enemies will scatter and leave.

Outline:

J2. Revealing the response.

Commentary:

In the midst of contention, when faced with lawsuits. "Contention" means fighting. During the Dharma-Ending Age, contention is at its height.

When the Buddha dwells in the world, the period is called the Proper Dharma Age. During the Proper Dharma Age, Dhyana concentration is solid. At that time, everyone likes to investigate Dhyana and enter samadhi. The Proper Dharma Age lasts from the time the Buddha appears in the world until one thousand years following his passing into stillness. After that comes the Dharma Image Age.

During the Dharma Image Age, people are resolute in building temples. They erect stupas and make images, and they consider that to be the most important work. Everyone likes to build big temples. That was why in this world some countries have great temples as a vestige of the Dharma Image Age. The Dharma Image Age also lasts for one thousand years, and after that comes the Dharma-Ending Age.

The Dharma-Ending Age lasts for ten thousand years. "Ending" here also refers to the tip of the branch. At that time the Dharma has arrived at its termination. At present we are in the Dharma-Ending Age. During this time, people are neither resolute in Dhyana concentration nor in building temples. They are resolute in fighting. And that is what we are discussing now in this line of verse—contention. Countries fight with countries; families fight with families; people fight with people; animals fight with animals; ghosts fight with ghosts—there is fighting everywhere. Why? Because during the Dharma-Ending Age, it is the nature of people to like fighting.

However, right within the Dharma-Ending Age there is the Proper Dharma Age. And, in the Dharma Image Age, there is also the Proper Dharma Age. What does this mean? Even within the Dharma-Ending Age, there are still people who want to investigate Chan and sit in meditation. For example, many people here like to take time out in the morning or evening, or even in the midst of a busy day, to sit in meditation. Just this is being in the Proper Dharma Age. During the Dharma-Ending Age, these people make up only an extremely small percentage of the entire population.

The fact that we can still lecture the Sutras and speak Dharma, and that people vigorously cultivate according to the teachings, and that some still find time amidst their busy schedules to sit in meditation—even to the point that some do not eat or sleep in order to come to hear the Sutra lectures—means that the Proper Dharma Age is found right within the Dharma-Ending Age.

Now, if all of us come together to build great Way-places and temples, then we are in the Dharma Image Age that is found within the Dharma-Ending Age.

Furthermore, within the Dharma Image Age, there are also the Dharma-Ending Age and the Proper Dharma Age. For instance, during the Dharma Image Age, when people like to build temples, there are those who do not like to build temples and who do not even believe in the Buddha, and that is like having the Dharma-Ending Age within the Dharma Image Age. And again, if at that time people get together and vigorously cultivate, then that is the Proper Dharma Age within the Dharma Image Age.

Likewise, within the Proper Dharma Age, the Dharma-Ending Age and the Dharma Image Age are also found. During the Proper Dharma Age, if people like to build temples, then they are dwelling in the Dharma Image Age. There are also those who study the Buddhadharma just a bit and then stop—they do not investigate thoroughly—and that is like having the Dharma-Ending Age right within the Proper Dharma Age.

Although this age is generally recognized as the Dharma-Ending Age, there are those of us in the West who abide in and uphold the Proper Dharma, and who have made vows to propagate the Buddhadharma so that it will forever remain in the world; thus, we have the Proper Dharma Age within the Dharma-Ending Age.

Every day we recite and hold the Shurangama Mantra, and in this way we are helping the entire world. If there is not even a single person who recites the Shurangama Mantra in a world, then that world is about to be destroyed. At that time, all the ghosts, goblins, and demons, the li, mei, and wang liang ghosts will appear. Why is it that they do not dare to make a full-force descent upon the world right now? It is because in this world there are still people who hold the Shurangama Mantra and who cultivate the Great Compassion Mantra and the Forty-two Hands and Eyes. Because of this, the demons and goblins do not dare to come out.

Now the text mentions a time that is strong in fighting, so it says, "In the midst of contention, when faced with lawsuits." At such a time you have to go before a judge and argue things out. Then you have to hire an attorney. Some attorneys have the talent to make you appear totally unreasonable, even if you are on the right side of the law; conversely, the cases of people who are clearly on the wrong side can be made to look completely justifiable. This is distorting right and wrong—turning things upside down.

Several months ago there was a news item in the papers: a woman murdered her husband. Now this woman was really rich. And she promised her attorney a fat sum of money if he got her off. The attorney knew very well that she was a murderer, but somehow he was able to twist the truth at the trial, and defended her in such a way that that she got off with her life. So, tell me, is there any true principle around? If you have enough money, you can kill and still get off scot-free.

This often happens in cases of contention. People go to court to argue principles, but somehow the lawyers twist the facts around so that even if you have principle, they make it appear as if you do not; and if you do not have principle, they make it appear as if you do. Isn’t this world full of darkness? If you go to court and argue your case, but you do not have a lot of money, then even if you have reason on your side, you still get convicted. Conversely, even if you do not have reason on your side, but are wealthy, you are freed. People are manipulated by money to the point that their consciences are completely destroyed.

Or when someone is terrified on the battlefield. This is when one becomes petrified amidst clashing armies on the battlefield. If he evokes the strength of Guanyin, all his many enemies will scatter and leave. If you can only recite "Namo Guanshiyin Bodhisattva," then your enemies will retreat and disperse; all the feuding will somehow disappear, and your enemies will disperse.

Who are your enemies? Say you have to go to court to argue a case against another person, or you fall before an adversary on the battlefield: The reason for this is the resentment piled up over many lifetimes. An animosity builds up over lifetimes to the point that the people involved come together to fight it out. Each person has to undergo his or her retribution. But if, at that time, you can be mindful of Guanyin Bodhisattva, this kind of retribution will be diminished—the heavy offenses will become lighter and the light ones will completely disappear. So the text says, "All his many enemies will scatter and leave." And so the power of Guanyin Bodhisattva is truly inconceivable and not something that most people can understand.

During World War II, a man by the name of Fei Fanjiu lived in Shanghai. He practiced reciting Guanyin Bodhisattva's name every day. During the Sino-Japanese war, Shanghai was constantly being shelled, and so he decided to move from his house to avoid the bombing. Right after he moved, his house was completely destroyed by a bomb. After staying four or five days at the new shelter, he got the notion that this place would not be safe, either. So he moved again. He moved to the "Concession Zone," an area that was loaned to foreigners. That was an area that the Westerners had leased from China to dwell in, and the Japanese did not dare bomb that area.

After living in the Concession Zone for a while, Fei Fanjiu thought that it was not safe either; but that area was surrounded by electric fencing and there was no way he could leave. Right at that time, when he was in a quandary as to what he should do, he saw a child. The child said, "You had better get out of here quickly; the Japanese army is on its way!" Suddenly he saw a place in the electric fence about two feet wide that was broken—just enough of a space to crawl through. He managed to get his mother, his wife, and his children out of the area through this hole in the fence. When they had all gotten out, the guards who had been on sentry duty were astonished; they could not figure out how those people had gotten through.

Fei Fanjiu then turned back to look for the child, but the child was nowhere to be seen. He looked back at the electric fence and the hole was not there. He was really puzzled. In this way he was saved from "the terror of the battlefield." From this incident we can see that the power of Guanshiyin Bodhisattva is truly inconceivable.

Now that we know Guanshiyin Bodhisattva protects those who recite his name, we should bring forth genuine faith and a sincere resolve to recite his name.

“Many enemies” does not refer to just one kind of enemy. I just related how countries fight with countries, families fight with families, people fight with people, ghost fight with ghosts, and animals fight with animals. Our ominous present-day situations are created by the power of living beings’ collective karma. There are many countries, in fact, where the population is not even composed of human beings! Sometimes a large group of mice might get reborn together as people in one place and make up a “country.” Or sometimes a population of frogs can be born together as humans in a particular country.

Last spring [1968] a lay disciple showed us an article in the newspaper which reported that in a certain country several tens of thousands of frogs all committed suicide together. Why did that happened? It is because the frog population was too large, so they all committed suicide in order to be reborn as humans. This shows that most of the people in that country were frogs before. If you check out their physiognomy in detail, they even look somewhat like frogs. Each nationality has its own characteristics, because in former lives they were a particular kind of animal. Now they have become people.

Last spring I talked about this principle and someone asked me, “In America, what were people before?” I said, “They were all kinds of creatures.” There are a lot of immigrants from many different countries in America, and they used to be people, animals, and all kinds of beings. That is the truth!

If you look carefully, and if you have the Buddha Eye, the Wisdom Eye, or the Heavenly Eye, you will know that the “people” in the world are not necessarily people. There are many kinds of creatures in human form. How can you tell? If you have the Buddha Eye, or the Wisdom Eye, and you want to know what people were in their past lives, you look at the “shadow” behind them. If there is a human “shadow” behind them, then they were people in their last lives. If they were animals or some strange creatures, they will have those “shadows” behind them. But if you have not opened your Buddha Eye, Wisdom Eye, or Heavenly Eye, you would not be able to tell.

Do not think that everyone you meet is a person. For example, Lin Biao [Commander-in-Chief of Chinese Communist army, who was chosen by Mao Zedong to be his official successor] was a wolf in his last life. That was why so many people were afraid of him. Zhou Enlai was a human in his last life. How can you know? If you obtain the Heavenly Eye, you can know all about these things. Do not be impatient. Just keep working hard, and you will be able to know whatever you want to know.

Now, in China—and I am not scolding Chinese people—there are a lot of people who used to be mice. But there are also many who used to be people, ghosts, or animals. In general, every country has people who used to be horses, cows, sheep, chicken, dogs, pigs, and so forth. Most people have come from the animal realm. This is a very subtle doctrine, however. Most people would not believe it if they have not experienced it. If you really want to know these things, you have to put your feet firmly on the ground and cultivate. When you obtain spiritual powers you will know: “The things that the Dharma Master said are really true! He told us really wonderful things!” Then you will know.

Sutra:

Wondrous your sound, Contemplator of the World’s Sounds—
A pure sound, a sound like the sea tide,
A sound beyond all worldly sounds,
We shall always bear it in mind.

Outline:

G3. Two exhortations.
H1. Exhortation to uphold the name.

I1. His state and wisdom are profound and wondrous, and so we should constantly uphold his name.

Commentary:

Wondrous your sound, Contemplator of the World's Sounds. Not only is the Bodhisattva's sound wondrous and subtle, it is also pure. A pure sound, a sound like the sea tide. The pure sound of Guanyin Bodhisattva is like the sound of the sea—the sea tide, which is reliable, ebbing and flowing. A sound beyond all worldly sounds, we shall always bear it in mind. Everyone should always recollect the name of Guanshiyin Bodhisattva.

Sutra:

In thought after thought we have no doubt.
Guanshiyin is pure and sagely.
In times of suffering, agony, danger, and death,
He is our refuge and protector.

Outline:

I2. The response is hard to fathom, and so we should uphold the name without doubts.

Commentary:

In thought after thought we have no doubt. You should not think, "What use is it to recite the name of Guanshiyin Bodhisattva? Isn't that just meaningless, reciting it every day?" It is very important not to have doubts. You should not have doubts for even a moment. Guanshiyin is pure and sagely. In times of suffering, agony, danger, and death, he is our refuge and protector. You can turn your very life over to Guanshiyin Bodhisattva. He will certainly protect and help you.

Sutra:

Complete with all merit and virtue,
His kind eyes watching living beings,
He is endowed with massive blessings, limitless as the sea.
Therefore we should reverently worship him.

Outline:

H2. Exhortation to make offerings to him.

Commentary:

Complete with all merit and virtue, his kind eyes watching living beings. Guanyin Bodhisattva possesses inconceivable spiritual powers. Like a compassionate father, Guanshiyin Bodhisattva, with the same kind eyes, looks upon all living beings to see whether they have committed offenses or not. He is endowed with massive blessings, limitless as the sea. His equal, great compassion saves all living beings. The blessed reward he has cultivated is as great and boundless as the sea. Therefore we should reverently worship him.

Today, we have finished the verse section. Tomorrow we will finish the “Universal Door Chapter.” On Sunday we will begin to lecture on the entire Sutra. [Note: The Venerable Master explained the “Universal Door Chapter” first, and after that he lectured on the Lotus Sutra from the beginning.]

To have an opportunity to hear the entire Lotus Sutra is rare. There is nowhere you can go to hear the entire Lotus Sutra. In Hong Kong and Taiwan there might be a chance, but it is very rare. Here in affluent America you can hear the Sutra. By listening to it, you are imperceptibly helping the entire world. We lecture the Sutra here, and the entire world receives the benefits of the Dharma assembly. The auspicious and lucky energy helps the world.

Wherever the Sutras are lectured, the gods, dragons, and the eightfold division come to guard the Bodhimanda. By coming to listen to the lectures, you too protect the Bodhimanda. One must have great good roots to have a chance to listen to the Sutras. A person without good roots could not hear them even if he wanted to. One demonic obstacle after another would prevent him from attending the lectures. In general, he would not be able to make it. Now that you can hear the Sutras and the Dharma, be assured that you have great merit and virtue.

Sutra:

At that time the Bodhisattva Guardian of the Earth rose from his seat and said to the Buddha, “World Honored One, if there are those who hear this chapter of Guanshiyin Bodhisattva, who learn about the self-mastery of his deeds and the power of his spiritual penetrations as shown in this Universal Door, you should know that the merit and virtue of such people will not be small.”

Outline:

E2. The merit and virtue of hearing this chapter.
F1. Guardian of the Earth praises and certifies it.

Commentary:

At that time, after Shakyamuni Buddha had finished speaking the verses, the Bodhisattva Guardian of the Earth. This Bodhisattva is mentioned in the Shurangama Sutra. Limitless eons ago, this Bodhisattva was illiterate. Although he had never studied the Buddhadharma, his conduct was very near that of a Buddhist. He was very strong and powerful. He could lift and move things that no one else could. His worked in repairing roads and sometimes he repaired bridges. He would help people move their carts or carry their burdens, and he never took any payment for these services. He did this for a long time.

Once a Buddha named Vishvabhu came by and said to him, "Leveling the roads is just casting aside the roots to grasp at the branches. It is superficial work."

"Then what should I do?" said the Bodhisattva.

"If you want to level the roads, first you should level your mind-ground. Why are there mountains and valleys, hills and dales? Because people's minds are not level. People's minds go 'up and down,' and so we have mountains, rivers, and valleys of the great earth come into being. You should first level your mind-ground. If the mind-ground is level, all places are level."

Having heard these instructions, Guardian of the Earth Bodhisattva then cultivated the mind-ground Dharma-door. He leveled the ground of his mind and cultivated to accomplishment.

From among the assembly, Guardian of the Earth Bodhisattva rose from his seat and said to the Buddha, "World Honored One, if there are those who hear this chapter of Guanshiyin Bodhisattva, who learn about the self-mastery of his deeds and the power of his spiritual penetrations as shown in this Universal Door—those are his Thirty-two Response Bodies, Fourteen Kinds of Fearlessness, and Nineteen Ways of Speaking Dharma—you should know that the merit and virtue of such people will not be small." The merit from hearing this chapter on Guanyin Bodhisattva's Universal Door is not small by any means.

Sutra:

When the Buddha had spoken the “Universal Door Chapter,” eighty-four thousand living beings in the assembly all brought forth the resolve for anuttarasamyaksambodhi.

Outline:

F2. Narrator describes benefits.

Commentary:

When the Buddha had spoken the "Universal Door Chapter," eighty-four thousand living beings in the assembly all brought forth the resolve for anuttarasamyaksambodhi, the mind for the Unsurpassed, Proper and Equal, Right Enlightenment.

"Eighty-four thousand living beings" also refers to the 84,000 kinds of afflictions we living beings have. The bodies of each one of us contain 84,000 germs. We people are "big germs," and all the little germs live inside of us, inside our blood, flesh, and internal organs. We are the life-support systems for the little germs, and the little germs help the big germs. Each one of the germs is actually a living being. You could never count them, there being so many, but in general we say "eighty-four thousand."

Outwardly, the world is filled with many, many more than 84,000 beings. "Eighty-four thousand beings" also refers to the thoughts which rise and pass away continually in the minds of living beings. Each thought is a living being, rising and passing away, undergoing birth and death. The 84,000 living beings are not separate from your own nature. The 84,000 living beings all bring forth, at the same time, the resolve for anuttarasamyaksambodhi.

Anuttarasamyaksambodhi is a Sanskrit word. Anuttara means "unsurpassed." Samyak means "proper and equal," and sambodhi means "right enlightenment." There is nothing higher than this enlightenment; it is equal to the enlightenment of the Buddha. Upon hearing this "Universal Door Chapter," all the 84,000 living beings brought forth the resolve for enlightenment. That was an especially rare occasion!

Now at the Buddhist Lecture Hall in San Francisco, we have lectured the "Universal Door Chapter," and over twenty people have heard it. All of these twenty people have 84,000 living beings inside of them. Ultimately, how many beings are there? And yet, did they all bring forth the mind of unsurpassed enlightenment? Even if not all of them did, the majority of them probably did. Those who attend the lectures on the Dharma Flower Sutra all have a share in becoming Buddhas in the future. That you have heard this chapter on Guanyin Bodhisattva means that in the past, for many lives and many eons, you have planted limitless, boundless good roots, and so now you have this causal condition to assemble together and study the Buddhadharma. This is a wonderful, inconceivable state.

Anuttarasamyaksambodhi is the highest position, the position of the Buddha's enlightenment, the Unsurpassed, Pervasive, Proper Enlightenment. Right Enlightenment is the enlightenment of the Arhats, those of the Two Vehicles. They have not, however, obtained the Proper and Equal Enlightenment. Who has obtained it? The Bodhisattvas—they have obtained both Right Enlightenment and Proper and Equal Enlightenment. Bodhisattvas are equal to the Buddha, in that sense. But they have not obtained the Unsurpassed Enlightenment.

Arhats have obtained Right Enlightenment; but they have not obtained Proper and Equal or Unsurpassed Enlightenment.

Bodhisattvas are said to be "Surpassed Knights" because they are surpassed by the Buddhas who are above them.

The Buddhas are called "Unsurpassed Knights," because none are higher than they are. They have obtained Unsurpassed, Proper and Equal, Right Enlightenment, which is like the Perfect Bodhi that returns to Nonattainment. The Buddhas have attained the Perfection of the Three Kinds of Enlightenment and also the ten thousand virtues. There is nothing higher than Unsurpassed, Proper and Equal, Right Enlightenment. This title applies only to the Buddhas, not to the Bodhisattvas or Arhats. Thus, it is the highest position.

From what position is this highest state reached? One might think it was realized from a high position, but that is not the case. The highest position is realized from the lowest position. Those who cultivate the Way should be very careful not to become arrogant, because the highest position can only be reached from the lowest position.

Lao Zi said, "The highest form of goodness is like water. Water skillfully benefits the ten thousand things but does not contend. Because it abides in places that people despise, it is close to the Way."

The ten thousand things include all creatures, flying, walking, and swimming, as well as all the plants and trees. All creatures need water, whether they are egg-born, womb-born, transformation-born, or moisture-born. But even though all creatures are nourished and supported by water, the water never thinks, "I am benefiting you, supporting your lives, and helping you out." Water does not fight either. It does not insist on taking credit for what it does, as people usually do. People all say, "I did this good deed, or that good deed. I built that temple. I built that bridge." They are always competing. Water never thinks like that. It is unselfish; it does not seek to benefit itself. Water does not fight for fame or profit. Water always flows to the bottom; it does not run upwards or fight to be on top.

"But rain falls down from the sky!" you say.

That is a very good point. The rain does fall down. But how does it get up there in the first place? It goes up from the lowest place. Then it falls down and flows into the rivers and the sea, and still recedes into the low-lying places. It just goes up into the sky temporarily. Water goes to places where no one else wants to go.

Why is it that cultivators do not like to live in fancy houses? They may even live in caves. The reason is they want to imitate water in dwelling in a lowly place. Because water goes to places people despise, it is close to the Way.

If you want to realize Unsurpassed, Proper and Equal, Right Enlightenment, you, too, must begin from the lowest position. You do not begin at the top.

If you want to become a Buddha, you must first be a good living being. How do you do that? You should just do what is good. Do not do evil. Follow the good and change the evil. Go down the good road, and get off the bad road. Go forward and pursue what is in accord with the Way. Retreat from that which is not in accord with the Way. Then you will be able to obtain Unsurpassed, Proper and Equal, Right Enlightenment.

Today we have finished this general explanation of the "Universal Door Chapter." The wonderful doctrine of the Universal Door is ineffable and endless. It is not something that can be completely explained in a short period of time. The Dharma Flower Sutra is ineffably wonderful. Its wonderful functions are infinite and endless. Today, I have explained the meaning in general. In the future, if there is an opportunity, we can go into it more deeply.

Saturday is Guanyin Bodhisattva’s anniversary. Now that we have heard this chapter, we have a general idea about the spiritual powers and wonderful functions of Guanyin Bodhisattva. Saturday we will recite Guanyin Bodhisattva’s name and bow the Great Compassion Repentance, and Guanyin Bodhisattva may manifest his inconceivable and wonderful functions. If there is anything on our mind, anything that you are seeking for, you should pray to Guanyin Bodhisattva. I believe that you will obtain what you seek.

The Wonderful Dharma Lotus Flower Sutra is the Sutra for becoming a Buddha. Having heard the Dharma Flower Sutra, we each have a share in future Buddhahood. This is a very rare opportunity.

Those who know Chinese know what bowing repentance is all about. Those who cannot read Chinese, who can only pronounce the sounds, do not know what quelling disasters and increasing blessings and longevity is all about. If they understood, they could also bow very happily. During all the years I was in Hong Kong, people would bow the Medicine Master Repentance. They did not just bow, they also gave two dollars a month, HK$24 a year. Some people just gave money; others gave money and bowed as well. Why? Because they wished to increase their blessings and longevity.

The Medicine Master Repentance was very popular in Hong Kong. Most Buddhist temples liked to hold this repentance, because it would bring more people to the temple. They all wanted to quell disasters and obstacles lay in their future, so they all wanted to eradicate disasters and increase their blessings and longevity. That was the trend in China and Hong Kong. In America, the Buddhadharma is just beginning, and people are not that greedy yet. Why not? Because they do not know that this is something to be greedy for. When they find out, I bet they will be even greedier than the Chinese. When the time comes, it may get so that they will even skip eating in order to come and bow repentances.

When I was in Hong Kong, at Western Bliss Gardens Temple, people came to bow repentances all the time, not caring whether it was too cold or hot, or whether they were hungry or thirsty. Sometimes I would go and bow with them, but at other times I had other business to take care of and they would bow on their own. The more they bowed, the happier they were. Now that I have brought this up, some people are having false thinking. Some are thinking, “I would not be greedy,” and others are thinking, “I would like to try it out!”